Book review – Goodbye Vitamin, Rachel Khong

Once again I was trusting a list of books one must read to find this book. 2017 had this book named on many a list and was even announced as the book of the year on some. This is a delightful book and relatable to so many of us.

The book of choice

Goodbye Vitamin, Rachel Khong.

Why this book?

I have a mother who had a stroke several years ago and we are still dealing with her care and well-being. I say ‘still’ as if there was a magical cure and we would be rid of this by now. As anyone who has had someone near to them discover they have an illness and that the ongoing care is relentless and always from that point on.

Goodbye Vitamin deals with a woman at a cross road in her life. Her mother asks her to return home to help take care of her father. As often is the case when there is an accident or an illness there is a lot of past pain brought back out in the open. In this case a relationship to be rebuilt and rediscovered.

This is not only a witty book but a lovely tale of family pain and a carer’s journey.

The Author

Rachel Khong has written a wonderful story for her first novel. She lives in the Bay area. That’s it! There is very little other information on this author with her debut novel. Click here for a link to her website. She is a student of both Yale and Florida University and grew up in California.

Why should you read it?

Everyone will deal with someone in their lives with some level of dementia. We can make jokes and laugh about it and their forgetfulness but the other side is the darker, frustrated human who is living with it. This is a book about supporting family and being there for them. (reluctantly, but there) This book deals with the various ways all members of a family do not have the same journey or story of the same event. It’s not a fluffy novel but at the same time very easy to read.

In Summary

You will enjoy this book and if you are like me, you will be looking forward to what is next in Rachel’s writing career. The delightful part of the story is titbits of the father/ daughter relationship in the form of a note passed between the two. The father having kept a journal of his discussions and interactions with his daughter. These are warm and wonderfully charming insights to the character who is losing his memory. Do you keep a journal of your children and their conversations?